Dorothea Jensen
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Dorothea Jensen is proud to be one of a very few people who has boarded a pirate ship and attacked a Viking vessel manned by real Vikings wearing horns and furs. She was born in Boston, but grew up in Chillicothe, Illinois, site of the Viking adventure. She then earned a BA in English from Carleton College and an MA in Secondary Education from the University of New Mexico. She has served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in South America, taught middle and high school English, tutored refugees in ESL, written grant proposals for various arts and history non-profits, written one play performed in Noh style, and another celebrating Lafayette's Farewell Tour performed at Old Sturbridge Village.
Her first historical novel for young readers, THE RIDDLE OF PENNCROFT FARM, has been used in classrooms for many years as an enrichment resource for kids studying the American Revolution. Her second historical novel, A BUSS FROM LAFAYETTE, is set during General Lafayette's Farewell Tour of America (1824-5) in the small town in New Hampshire where she has lived since 1991. She also co-authored a teacher's guide for using A BUSS FROM LAFAYETTE to help students understand the major role played by Lafayette, the French Alliance and other facts about the Revolutionary War. |
Dorothea also writes modern Christmas stories in verse. Modeled on the 19th century classic poem, "A Visit from St. Nicholas", these award-winning illustrated story poems feature decidedly 21st century elves savvy in modern technology. Four have been published: TIZZY, THE CHIRSTMAS SHELF ELF; BLIZZY, THE WORRYWART ELF; DIZZY, THE STOWAWAY ELF; AND FRIZZY, THE S.A.D. ELF. The fifth, BIZZY, THE BOSSY BOOTS ELFf, will be released in 2020.
Also in 2020, Dorothea combined her knowledge of history and delight in versitying to write LIBERTY-LOVING LAFAYETTE: HOW "AMERICA'S FAVORITE FIGHTING FRENCHMAN HELPED WIN OUR INDEPENDENCE. This playful rhyming narrative covers what Hamilton left out about Lafayette!
In addition to writing, Dorothea is an experienced actress and singer. She performed with the Ex Machina Baroque Opera Company in Minneapolis, and also played most of the Gilbert and Sullivan battle-ax contralto and ingenue mezzo roles with companies in Philadelphia and Minneapolis. She usually lost the hero to the soprano.
Also in 2020, Dorothea combined her knowledge of history and delight in versitying to write LIBERTY-LOVING LAFAYETTE: HOW "AMERICA'S FAVORITE FIGHTING FRENCHMAN HELPED WIN OUR INDEPENDENCE. This playful rhyming narrative covers what Hamilton left out about Lafayette!
In addition to writing, Dorothea is an experienced actress and singer. She performed with the Ex Machina Baroque Opera Company in Minneapolis, and also played most of the Gilbert and Sullivan battle-ax contralto and ingenue mezzo roles with companies in Philadelphia and Minneapolis. She usually lost the hero to the soprano.
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Tizzy, the Christmas Shelf Elf
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Illustrated Christmas story in verse for children
A recipient of the Mom's Choice Award, this Christmas story in verse celebrates the power of children's imaginations and the magic of books. It tells what happens when two naughty boys find Tizzy, one of Santa's elves, stranded in their living room. Tizzy tells them that Santa's sleigh is powered by the imaginations of children, and pleads with them to use the power of their own imaginations to send him home. But how? 
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Blizzy, the Worrywart Elf
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Illustrated Christmas story in verse for children
Blizzy, Tizzy's "favorite lass", is the only one of Santa's Izzy Elves who notices that Tizzy is missing on Christmas morning. When she starts questioning all her friends about when they saw him last, and where Tizzy could possibly be, however, they think she is just being a "worrywart". What Blizzy REALLY is, however, is very, very clever, and she just might figure out the mystery! This is the second of the Santa's Izzy Elves series of Christmas stories in verse by Dorothea Jensen. It is a recipient of the Mom's Choice Award.
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Dizzy, the Stowaway Elf
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Illustrated Christmas story in verse for children
Dizzy, the Stowaway Elf, the third story in the Santa's Izzy Elves series, tells what happens when Dizzy (Tizzy’s best friend), eager to have an adventure of his own, sneaks aboard Santa’s sleigh on Christmas Eve. He literally drops into the bedroom of two little boys, Drake and Stuart, and the three of them share a wild joy ride that might be even more of an adventure than Dizzy was hoping for!
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The Riddle of Penncroft Farm
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Juvenile Historical Fiction
Lars Olafson moves with his parents to the old family farm near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Lars is miserable, until he meets Geordie, a boy whose stories of the Revolutionary War are as exciting as those of an eyewitness. Then Lars is faced with a mystery linked to the Revolutionary War, and Geordie’s ghostly tales are his only chance of solving it. 
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Liberty-Loving Lafayette: How "America's Favorite Fighting Frenchman" Helped Win Our Independence
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Poetry, Biography, History, Non-Fiction, Young Adult, Rhyming Couplets
Inspired by the Broadway hit, HAMILTON, and by Longfellow's "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere," author Dorothea Jensen wrote this short rhyming narrative about the Marquis de Lafayette and his crucial role in our Revolutionary War. A glossary and extensive endnotes supply further information about the historical figures and events mentioned in the poem. This playful historical account is aimed at young and older adults. It would be entertaining and educational to perform in events celebrating the upcoming bicentennial of Lafayette's 1824-5 Farewell Tour of America. A Few Things You Will Learn from this Book: Who the unlikely person was who inspired Lafayette to help America How Lafayette's powerful father-in-law tried to discourage his plan Why such a high rank was given to an inexperienced 19-year-old How Lafayette helped strengthen the crucial French Alliance What Lafayette's key successes were as a military commander in America Sample Chapter
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